Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk, and Bill Gates Warn About Artificial IntelligenceSome of the most popular sci-fi movies—2001: A Space Odyssey, The Terminator, The Matrix, Transcendence, Ex Machina, and many others—have been based on the notion that artificial intelligence will evolve to a point at which humanity will not be able to control its own creations, leading to the demise of our entire civilization. This fear of rapid technology growth and our increasing dependence on it is certainly warranted, given the capabilities of current machines built for military purposes.

Already, technology has had a significant impact on warfare since the Iraq war began in 2001. Unmanned drones provide sustained surveillance and swift attacks on targets, and small robots are used to disarm improvised explosive devices. The military is currently funding research to produce more autonomous and self-aware robots to diminish the need for human soldiers to risk their lives. Founder of Boston Dynamics, Marc Raiber, released a video showing a terrifying six-foot tall, 320-lb. humanoid robot named Atlas, running freely in the woods. The company, which was bought by Google in 2013 and receives grant money from the Department of Defense, is working on developing an ...